Henry County Update-Newsletter

November 7, 2022

Board of

Commissioners

Board Votes to Set Aside $3.5 Million in Federal Funds for Piedmont Henry Hospital Expansion

Regular Meetings November 29, 9:00 a.m.

(Last BOC meeting of the year) Meetings held at: Administration Building Community Room 140 Henry Parkway McDonough, GA 30253 Regular Commission meetings air daily on Henry TV Spectrum Channel 180 at 9 a.m. & 7 p.m.

The Henry County Board of Commissioners unanimously voted to approve the designation of $3.5 million in American Rescue Plan (ARPA) funds for the construction Please visit henrycountyonline.com of a new observation unit at Piedmont Henry Hospital. The action came at the for more viewing options November 1 Commission meeting. including Facebook and YouTube.

Dr. Lily Henson, the CEO of Piedmont Henry Hospital, presented at the meeting and answered questions from commissioners. She explained the need for the new unit.

“Observation patients are those deemed by insurance companies to require less than 23 hours in the hospital. [They] undergo a series of tests to determine whether they meet criteria for full admission,” Henson said. “Right now our observation patients are scattered throughout the hospital because we are so jam packed that we will place our patients in any space available.”

The new unit would be a marked improvement on the current situation.

Continued on page 3

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November 7, 2022 PUBLISHED BY Henry County Communications & Public Information Department Henry County Government

EDITORS

Nicholas Ivey Melissa Robinson

GRApHIC DESIgNER Meredith Butler

LAYOUT DESIgNER Meredith Butler

CONTRIBUTORS Melissa Robinson Nicholas Ivey

SEE CLICK FIX

henrycounty-ga.com/SeeClickFix

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Piedmont Henry- continued from page 1 The planned expansion will cost $3.5 million, to be paid for with federal dollars. The majority of that, $2.4 million, will go towards construction. Henson estimates it will take about six months to complete once work is underway. The observation unit is one of many functional areas of the hospital that have come to be at or over capacity, particularly since the onset of the pandemic. At one point in August of 2021, they had 170 patients in their 55-bed emergency room. While this figure has come down some since the peak of the pandemic, Piedmont Henry remains consistently over capacity. And with the closure of the Wellstar EMC center in Fulton County, they only see matters growing

worse as more and more patients are being diverted to their facility. As a result, hospital administrators are working quickly to try to grow to meet demand.Beyond a campus expansion, the hospital is also looking at adding new specialists, so they can care for as many patients as possible without having to divert them to other hospitals. Commissioners were quick to laud the work of hospital leadership and their employees.

“Piedmont has been a great partner with the County.

And you all are vital to the health and welfare of our community,” said County Chair Carlotta Harrell.

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November 7, 2022 Henry County Partners with Ameris Bank to Combat Hunger With 38 million people in the United States facing hunger, Henry County Government is partnering with Ameris Bank on its Helping Fight Hunger initiative through November 25, by collecting nonperishable food donations to help feed those in need.

This is accomplished through donation boxes placed at the Henry County Administration Buildingand each of the four senior centers, organizers are hoping for a great effort from the public.

Those wishing to donate may also drop off items at any Ameris Bank location.

Since 2010, Ameris Bank’s Helping Fight Hunger campaign has been supporting people in need in

local communities. This year they have partnered with the nationally recognized nonprofit Feeding America to collect donations online in addition to collecting nonperishable food items in each of their branches and at county government facilities in Henry County. Even small contributions make a big impact, as Feeding America can turn every $1 donated into 10 meals for families in need. Items collected will be donated to local food banks.

When donors enter their zip codes, Feeding America works to direct the donations to food banks in the donors’ community. If you or your organization are interested in donating online, please visit https://teamfeed.feedingamerica.org/ through November 25.

Follow us on Facebook: facebook.com/HenryCountyBOC henrycounty-ga.com

Board Takes Action to Enhance Henry County Public Safety

The Henry County Board of Commissioners approved the acceptance of four grants awarded to the Henry County Police Department at the November 1 regular Commission meeting.

Commissioners approved acceptance of a grant from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety for the Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic (H.E.A.T) program. The main objective of the H.E.A.T program is to enforce driving under the influence, speeding and occupant safety laws. The grant totals $98,760.48.

Next, the Commission accepted a grant awarded to the HCPD under the Bureau of Justice Assistance Patrick Leahy Bulletproof Vest Partnership (BVP) program in the amount of $43,177.02 to purchase body armor vests for sworn officers.

The HCPD was also awarded the FY2022 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant totaling $16,691. Awarded to the Criminal Investigation Division, the division plays a key role aiding the department in investigating criminal activities. The grant will allow the division to purchase digital forensic technology to enhance investigative capabilities, identify suspects more quickly, and produce evidence to support prosecution.

Lastly, the Commission accepted a grant awarded to the HCPD by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency and Homeland Security Agency in the amount of $3,000 to support the HCPD Explosive Ordinance Detection K-9 Team.

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November 7, 2022 Upcoming Events

In honor of Veterans Day, a ceremony will be held at the Veterans Wall of Honor at Heritage Park in McDonough on Friday, November 11 at 11:00 a.m.

Honoring all those who served.

henrycounty-ga.com

November 7, 2022 Board Approves Agreements and Purchases

The Henry County Board of Commissioners approved several resolutions at the November 1 Commission meeting.

Commissioners approved an annual re-occurring broadband data purchase through LTE Communications for LTE systems on public safety radios. With a cost of $10 dollars per month, per unit, the annual cost of the implementation is $98,190 for the year 2023.

Accepting staff recommendation, Commissioners awarded a bid for Waste Wood Grinding Services to M.W. Collins, Inc for the Henry County Recycling Center. The contract cost is $100 per cubic year after grinding.

In SPLOST related action, the Board approved two resolutions, expending SPLOST IV and V funds. The Board approved the purchase of new sports lighting for Mickey D. Cochran Park from Musco Lighting, LLC in the amount of $198,211, which will replace lighting on an existing football field in the park. The new lighting is a part of a park renovation for the county-owned park.

SPLOST V was approved by voters in November 2019.

The Board also approved the purchase of a Bobcat UW56 for the Atlanta Speedway Airport from Bobcat of Atlanta utilizing SPLOST IV funds. SPLOST IV was approved by voters in November 2013.

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County Reaches Tax Revenue Compromise

The Henry County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to pass a resolution authorizing the County to enter into a renewed cooperative agreement with the cities of Hampton, Locust Grove, McDonough, and Stockbridge setting the proportional share of the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) revenue to be divided up among the five entities. The action came at the November 1 Commission meeting.

been the ratio for the preceding decade.

Under state law, Henry County and the majority of the four cities must come to an agreement once every ten years on the proportional share of LOST revenues for each government. Tuesday’s vote came after months of negotiations between the county and the four cities.

County Commission Chair Carlotta Harrell described the length and tenor of the talks as business as usual.

A few of the Commissioners expressed misgivings with the final number. Their contention was that the ratio is supposed to be determined by eight criteria as set forth in state law. Had this been adhered to, the County share would have been higher.

“It became spirited at times,” Harrell said. “This is part of government. We have passionate and committed leaders advocating for the needs of their jurisdictions.”

The resolution approved by the Board keeps the LOST distribution in place with 66 percent to Henry County and 34 percent to be divided among the cities. This has

“We have kept the lines of communication open. And have been able to sit around the table even as we did yesterday,” Chair Harrell said. “I can support a resolution put forth by the cities to keep the LOST at the current split of 66-34. This way we all win. Our citizens win. And we continue to work and collaborate together.”

“If we looked at the criteria…there would be a movement [of the percentage]. And the movement would probably be justified,” District 4 Commissioner Vivian Thomas said. “[But] I can support staying where we are. We want our cities to be healthy. We want our cities to be strong. And we want to support them in that effort.”

“A 69-31 split seems to me to be the right number,” Continued on page 9

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November 7, 2022

Tax Revenue- continued from page 8 District 3 Commissioner Dee Anglyn said. “With that being said, I can sit here and be right in my number.

But I have to make sure I do the right thing not just for myself but for the cities we also serve.” The four mayors were present at the meeting. They spoke after the vote to express their gratitude at the positive outcome.

“The cities win. The County wins. And better yet, our citizens we represent win,” Stockbridge Mayor Anthony Ford said. “The next ten years will be outstanding.”

After thanking District 2 Commissioner Dee Clemmons for being pivotal in negotiations, Mayor Ann Tarpley of Hampton also thanked Harrell for meeting with her and the other mayors on Monday to discuss LOST.

“Yesterday, we had a wonderful meeting, a wonderful meeting. And really put our heads down and looked at everything. We said this is the way forward.”

Locust Grove Mayor Robert Price added that the vote, “Shows that Henry County is all united. And we can work together on any project that comes up in anybody’s district. In anybody’s town.”

McDonough Mayor Sandra Vincent concluded by saying, “This is truly a spirit of collaboration. One that I hope will continue…We’ve done a lot of great things over the years...we need to keep that spirit up.”

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